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University of Minnesota seeks to ban Redskins nickname at stadium for November NFL game

Redskins Name Football

In this June 17, 2014, file photo, Washington Redskins helmets sit on the field during an NFL football minicamp in Ashburn, Va. The University of Minnesota is asking the Minnesota Vikings to not use the Redskins nickname in promotional material for the November 2 game between the Vikings and Redskins on UM's campus.
(Nick Wass/AP)

"In his letter to McCollum, Kaler said the Redskins name is “offensive and should be replaced.” Kaler went on to say that the University of Minnesota is “working with the Vikings to make every effort to eliminate the use of Washington’s team name” on game day.

He added that the college and the Vikings are talking with the “American Indian community to ensure a peaceful, positive and safe event for fans while also providing space for protest and expression.”

The Vikings host Washington at the University of Minnesota’s stadium on Nov. 2. The Vikings will play home games at the Minnesota venue for two seasons while a new stadium is under construction.

Vikings executive vice president of public affairs Lester Bagley says the team does not have a plan for how to handle the request from UM yet.

“We take the issue very seriously, but we’re just getting ready for our season and we’ve been very focused on training camp and the preseason, and to be honest, we don’t have a game plan for our Nov. 2 game versus Washington,” Bagley said.

“A Redskin is a football player, Snyder recently told ESPN's John Barr. “A Redskin is our fans. The Washington Redskin fan base represents honor, represents respect, represents pride. Hopefully winning. And it's a positive. Taken out of context — you can take things out of context all over the place — but in this particular case, it is what it is. It's very obvious.”